The ASH Research Training Award for Fellows (RTAF) grants $50,000 to fellows in training so they will have protected time for research.  The term of the award is for one year, and it is intended primarily for fellows in programs that would otherwise not be able to provide the resources for protected research time.

By providing protected time, the RTAF is designed to encourage junior researchers in hematology, hematology/oncology, or hematology-related training programs to pursue a career in academic hematology.

Goals of this program are:

• To encourage and enable fellowship programs to provide time for research (clinical, basic science, or translational)
• To promote mentorship of hematology trainees by outstanding faculty members
• To produce, on a yearly basis, clinician scientist candidates for academic track positions
• To provide bridging funds for trainees who need more time to generate sufficient expertise to be competitive when applying for K award funding

Support

The ASH Research Training Award for Fellows will, on a three-year pilot basis, grant $50,000 for a one-year period to third- and fourth-year trainees (at time of the award) in training who are not yet eligible for the ASH Scholar Awards (fellow category).

The Research Training Award for Fellows is intended to be used primarily for salary support for the applicant. However, up to $5,000 may be allocated for research supplies and reagents, and up to $1,000 may be allocated for travel to the ASH annual meeting (no other meetings are eligible for this allocation). Each of the non-salary support portions of the proposed budget must be accompanied by a clear justification.

Awards will be activated on July 1 and conclude on June 30 of the year following activation. Monies cannot be used toward salary/benefits for the mentor or toward an institution's overhead or indirect costs. Payments will be made to the appropriate financial officer of the institution.

Eligibility Criteria

The ASH Research Training Award for Fellows is intended for upper-level fellows who meet the following criteria.

At the time of application (October 29, 2010):

• The applicant must either be an ASH Associate or Active member or have submitted a membership application.
• The applicant must not have any other career-development funding.
• The applicant must have completed at least four months, but less than 18 months, of post-doctoral research training.
• The proposed research must be in hematology or a hematology-related area.
• The applicant should be planning to pursue an investigative career in hematology research.
• The applicant must have clear and documented support of a funded mentor (funding may be NIH, federal, foundation, or private) and documented support from the program director for dedicated research time. The mentor must remain funded during the award period.
• The applicant must have a mentor who is an ASH member. If the mentor is not an active ASH member, a letter of support from an ASH member must be included.
• At least 75 percent of the applicant’s full-time professional efforts must be devoted to research during the funded period.

At the time of the award (July 1, 2011) the applicant must:

• Be an MD, DO, DO/PhD, or MD/PhD
• Be either an ASH Associate or Active member
• Have completed one year of clinical training within a hematology, hematology/oncology, or hematology-related training program in the United States or Canada
• Be a third- or fourth-year trainee in a hematology, hematology/oncology, or hematology-related training program in the United States or Canada (or if the applicant is in a two year training program, be a second or third-year trainee)

Letter-of-Intent Requirements

Letters of intent for the 2011 application cycle will be due on September 15, 2010. Those who have fulfilled the letter-of-intent requirements will be invited to apply, and applications are due by October 29, 2010.

Applicants must submit a letter-of-intent package that includes the following:

• Letter-of-intent form (completed)
• A 350-word (maximum) abstract describing the proposed research project (References do not need to be included.)
• Your curriculum vitae so your eligibility can be confirmed.
• Letters of intent must be submitted electronically to training@hematology.org by 12:00 midnight (ET) on September 15, 2010.
• Only electronic submissions will be accepted.
• All submissions MUST include the required documents listed above, in the order above, and be submitted as one PDF file.
• The file should be named in the following format: RTAF Lastname-Firstname LOI 2011.pdf.
• Letters of intent that are not formatted correctly, that contain incorrect documents, or that are missing required documents will not be considered. 

Selection

The selection of award winners will be made by members of the Award Study Section. Criteria for selection are:

• The qualifications and experiences of the applicant. Factors to be considered include, but are not limited to the potential for future independent investigation and commitment to a career in hematology research.
• Quality of the mentor and the plan for mentor/applicant interaction and career development
• The significance, feasibility, and originality of the proposed hypothesis, research, and methodology
• A focus on hematology research
• Availability of institutional resources to support the proposed project

Ten finalists will be selected to be interviewed by the Award Study Section. All finalists for the award must be available for face-to-face interviews with the Study Section in March. The interviews will focus on determining the applicants' commitment to hematology and potential for success.

ASH will not select more than one awardee per fellowship program per year. Additionally, ASH will not grant more than one award per medical school per year.

Timeline

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